The project “Responding to Poverty and Disability through Higher Education and Research” (RESPOND-HER) is based on academic cooperation between the Department of Special Needs Education of Addis Ababa University (AAU) and the Department of Education of the University of Vienna (UV).It focuses on two main objectives: First, by establishing high quality research on disability and by fostering the teaching skills of academic staff from AAU, the project aims to develop sustainable professional capacities at university level. In the long run, this process will also facilitate the establishment of training for professionals at non-university institutions.Second, the project will facilitate students with disabilities’ access to higher education and to the labour market by targeting institutional barriers in cooperation with stakeholders from all regions of the country. The latter will be complemented by enhancing services and technical equipment for disabled students at AAU in combination with establishing a nation-wide development plan.